by Eric Meier Spruce is a softwood with a good strength-to-weight ratio, as is favored in aircraft construction; it's excellent acoustic properties make it a popular choice for many acoustic musical instrument tops, such as violins or guitars. When dealing with Spruce (Picea genus), there are a few main species and groupings that help to sort things out. Eastern Spruce Sitka Spruce Species: Black Spruce (Picea mariana) Red Spruce (Picea rubens) White Spruce (Picea glauca) Additionally, the following species of Spruce are technically not "Eastern" in their provenance, but still share all or most of the same characteristics: Engelmann Spruce (Picea engelmannii) (Engelmann Spruce can sometimes be distinguished on the basis of its lighter weight and more abrupt earlywood to latewood transition.) Norway Spruce (Picea abies) Species: Sitka Spruce (Picea sitchensis) (Of all the species of spruce, the only one that can be reliably separated from other species on the basis of macroscopic features is Sitka Spruce.) Characteristics: Sapwood and heartwood are usually indistinguishable, and tend to be a uniform cream color or yellowish color. Resin canals are small and infrequent, sometimes in tangential groups. Tracheid diameter small, with a fine texture. Characteristics: Sapwood is a cream or yellow color, but heartwood can sometimes have [...]

> Softwoods > Pinaceae > Abies Example species (Abies alba) Common Name(s): FirDistribution: Primarily in mountainous/high-altitude regions worldwide.Genus Size: About 50 species (see available species listing)Mechanical Characteristics: Low density and hardness; generally good strength-to-weight ratio. Visual Characteristics: Generally light-colored reddish heartwood that isn't well demarcated from the sapwood. Identification: Although Abies is in the Pinaceae family, firs lack resin canals—except in the case of trauma. Hemlock (Tsuga spp.) is difficult to differentiate from fir species: both have similar color, grain, and weight. Both lack resin canals and have little to no discernible scent. Spruce (Picea spp.) and pine (Pinus spp.) are two similar-looking softwoods that can also be confused with fir. However, these two genera both feature resin canals (and pine has a distinct odor), which helps to separate them from fir. Comments: Abies is the genus that contains all true fir species. Note that Douglas-fir is in the Pseudotsuga genus and is actually more closely related to larch (Larix genus) than fir. Interior Construction Lumber: Since species of fir have very poor resistance to decay and insect attack, they are generally used for interior construction purposes. They are usually mixed with other species of spruce (Picea) and pine (Pinus) with similar mechanical characteristics and sold [...]

by Eric MeierDisclaimer: I am neither a bowyer/archer nor a materials scientist/engineer. The data and ideas presented in this article are by no means meant to be considered authoritative or precisely correlated to real-world situations. The purpose of the article is simply to foster imagination and exploration in the area of bow woods and what does/does not constitute a good bow wood.Archery bows present a somewhat unique challenge in finding the right requirements for the best wood. In the simplest and crudest terms possible, the wood should be able to bend, but not break. With all of the data available on the Wood Database, there's no single measurement that directly indicates a wood's ability to bend easily without breaking. Instead, it is primarily a combination of two values: the wood's modulus of elasticity (also known as MOE), and the modulus of rupture (also known as MOR).Again, dealing in the simplest terms:The modulus of elasticity (MOE) measures how easily a wood will bend, (the higher the number, the more stubborn and stiff it will be).The modulus of rupture (MOR) measures how easily the wood will break, (the higher the numer, the harder it is to break or rupture).In terms of looking at the raw mechanical data of [...]

The Pinaceae family contains many of the most well known softwood genera and species in North America. It contains pine, spruce, fir, and hemlock, just to name a few.Genera in the Pinaceae family Abies (fir) Cedrus (cedar) Larix (larch) Picea (spruce) Pinus (pine) Pseudotsuga (douglas-fir) Tsuga (hemlock)

by Eric MeierPine is pine, right? Not quite. There's quite a range in density and strength when it comes to the Pinus genus. Take one of the species of southern yellow pine, Shortleaf Pine, for instance: it has strength properties that are roughly equivalent to Red Oak (with the notable exception of hardness)—and in some categories, such as compression strength parallel to the grain, the pine is actually stronger!Yet there are also a lot of types of pine that are considerably weaker, and while they certainly have a prominent place in the construction industry, by using all species interchangeably with the generic name "pine," we create a very inaccurate picture of this interesting wood genus!It can help to know what you've really got, so let's go over some of the key types of pine seen today:The Soft PinesThis group is characterized by pines with a low density, even grain, and a gradual earlywood to latewood transition. Species within this group can’t be reliably separated from one another, but it can be helpful to recognize their features in order to distinguish them from the hard pines.There are three principal species of soft pine:Sugar Pine (Pinus lambertiana)Western White Pine (Pinus monticola)Eastern White Pine (Pinus [...]

by Eric Meier "Not to omit any one of them, the yew is similar to these other trees in general appearance . . . It is an ascertained fact that travellers' vessels, made in Gaul of this wood, for the purpose of holding wine, have caused the death of those who used them." –Pliny the Elder, from Naturalis Historia, ca. 77 AD Looking at the above quotation, (taken from a writing nearly two thousand years old), ought to bring—at the very least—a small bit of respect and attention to the matter of safety as it pertains to wood toxicity. If this subject has been known and reported as "ascertained fact" since ancient history, how much more ought we to take heed in modern times, considering that we have so many more well-developed means of communication and testing? Wood Toxicity and Allergen Chart Below you'll find a chart of various wood species, along with their reported effects and properties. The information on this chart has been compiled from many sources, with references given at the bottom. When viewing the chart, please keep the follow in mind: Just because any given wood is not listed on the chart, does not mean that [...]

by Eric Meier Hardwoods and Softwoods Tree Growth Sapwood and Heartwood Surfaces of Wood Grain Appearance Rays It’s common knowledge that wood comes from trees. What may not be so apparent is the structure of the wood itself, and the individual components that make up any given piece of lumber. Unlike a mostly homogenous piece of foamboard, MDF, or other man-made material, wood is an organic material, and has many distinct characteristics which will be helpful to learn. Hardwoods and Softwoods An immediate and broad distinction that can be made between types of trees (and wood) is the label of hardwood or softwood. This is somewhat of a misnomer, as the label is actually just a separation between angiosperms (flowering plants such as maple, oak, or rosewood), and conifers (cone-bearing trees such as pine, spruce, or fir). Hardwoods (angiosperms) have broad-leaved foliage, and tend to be deciduous—that is, they lose their leaves in the autumn. (However, many tropical hardwood species exist which are evergreen—they maintain their leaves year-round.) Additionally, hardwood trees tend to have a branched or divided trunk, referred to as a dendritic form. This White Oak tree—with a branching form, and leaves that drop in the autumn—is [...]